It's Not Batman Beyond but It Still Looks Cool [Game Announcement]

It seems like Game Informer has become one of the biggest platforms from which to announce your games these days. We have been speculating for months now about the future of the Arkham franchise and today we get our answer. Game Informer's May issue will feature Batman: Arkham Origins, the newest addition to the Arkham franchise. Details right now are scarce but we do know that the game is set for an October 25, 2013 release and will feature a younger, more inexperienced Batman as he encounters many of his greatest foes for the first time ever. 

We saw this game coming but what I wasn't necessarily prepared for was the reveal that Rocksteady wouldn't be involved with the project. Warner Bros Montreal is leading the charge with Origins but will ultimately be using many of the assets that were created for the previous games; including the tweeked version of the Unreal Engine that Rocksteady crafted. A little concerning but at the same time, it might ensure that the game doesn't feel too familiar. Hopefully the team is able to leave their own mark on the franchise without messing with any of the finely crafted play controls. 

Rocksteady's departure may be a means for concern but Eric Holmes, the director behind open-world action games like Hulk: Ultimate Destruction and Prototype, is at the wheel. I may not have been a fan of Prototype but he has a firm grasp on satisfying traversal mechanics and open-world game design. At the very least, i'm curious to see what kinds of innovation he introduces to the franchise. 

Conceptually, I am pleased with the direction they are moving. I was crossing my fingers for a Batman Beyond game but perhaps that isn't out of the question at this point. Rocksteady is clearly hard at work on something else and this new team is just now dipping their toes in the franchise. 

As with any Arkham game, the villain topic is always at the precipice of discussion. Deathstroke has already been confirmed but there are surely many more villains that will be revealed in the coming weeks. Will the Joker return (or perhaps more importantly, Mark Hamill)? How do you feel about the announcement and what villains are you hoping to make their debut this time around? 

UPDATE: Handheld (3DS / Vita) counterparts to Arkham Origins (Titled Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate) are also in development at Armature Studios. The games are 2.5D metroid-esque games and take place after the events of Arkham Origins proper. Armature is headed by key talent that broke off from Retro Studios, the team that worked on the Metroid Prime trilogy. I normally don't give these kinds of things much attention but with talent from Retro on board, its hard not to care. 

[Source: Game Informer]